TOW Chandler and Rachel
by Rachel Karen Green
Summary: After Ross and Rachel break up, she doesn't think she'll ever find love again. Little does she know it's been right under her nose - or across the hall - the whole time. Rated R for later chapters.
1. Prologue

A/N: All of these characters are owned by Bright, Kauffman, and Crane, the writers of the show, and NBC and its affiliates.   
  
I do not own them. I am just a big fan.   
  
PROLOGUE  
  
"You think I need a new walk?" That was Joey, breaking the silence in Monica's bedroom, where he, Monica, Phoebe,   
  
and Chandler had been trapped for hours now, while Rachel and Ross were fighting. The other three turned to look at him.  
  
"What?" Chandler asked, giving Joey a look. Their friends were out there in the living room, breaking up, and   
  
Joey was asking asinine questions like this. Perhaps the leg wax was getting to him.  
  
"Well, you know, I've been walking the same way since high school," Joey said. "You know...you know how some guys,   
  
they walk into a room and everyone takes notice? I think I need a take-notice walk." Chandler continued to stare at him,   
  
dumbfounded.  
  
"Are you actually saying these words?" he asked. Joey looked at him and shrugged.  
  
Meanwhile, in the living room, the argument was still going strong. It was now three in the morning and Ross had not   
  
given up. Sitting in the chair, he turned to face Rachel, who was sitting on the couch, a pleading look in his eyes.  
  
"What, now you're not even talking to me?" he asked as he moved to sit on the coffee table in front of her. "Look,   
  
Rachel, I'm, I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry, I was out of my mind. I thought I'd lost you, I didn't know what to do. Come on!   
  
Come on, how insane must I have been to do something like this? Huh? I, I, I don't cheat, right, I...that's not me! I'm not   
  
Joey!"  
  
At this point the four in the bedroom were leaning against the door, eavesdropping, and heard what Ross had just said.  
  
  
  
"Whoa-ho-ho!" Joey exclaimed defensively, looking at Chandler. Chandler, in return, gave him a look that said,   
  
"Come on." Joey nodded. "Yeah, okay." Monica glanced at the clock.  
  
"Hey, it's three in the morning! They don't know I've come home yet! You notice how neither of them   
  
are wondering where I am," Monica said, turning to see the other three staring at her.  
  
"Yeah, you know, people can be so self-involved," Phoebe said. The gang went back to eavesdropping.  
  
"You know what? You know what? I'm, I'm not the one that wanted that, that break, okay?" Ross continued as Rachel   
  
stared blankly past him. "You're the one that bailed on us. You're the one that, that ran when things got just a little   
  
rough!" Rachel's eyes darted to his face, a scowl on her lips, fire in her eyes.  
  
"That's..." she began.  
  
"That's what?!"  
  
"That is neither here nor there."  
  
"Okay, well here we are," Ross said. "Now we're in a tough spot again, Rach. What do you want to do?   
  
How do you want to handle it? Huh? Do you wanna fight for us, or do you wanna bail?" On the verge of tears,   
  
he sat down next to her and took her hand in his. "Look, I...I did a terrible, terrible, stupid thing. Okay?   
  
And I'm sorry. I wish I could take it back, but I can't. I just can't see us throwing away something that we both   
  
know is so damn good, Rachel. I love you so much." As she continued to stare straight ahead, Ross began kissing her   
  
shoulder, then moved his way up her neck, to the side of her face. Her eyelids began to flutter, her breathing became   
  
labored; it felt like it used to. He almost kissed her on the lips when she realized that the fight wasn't over and she   
  
pushed him away, jumping up from the couch and standing in front of the television.  
  
"No, Ross! Don't! You can't just kiss me, and think you're going to make it all go away, okay? It doesn't work   
  
that way! It doesn't just make it better! Okay?" Ross put a hand up to silence her yelling.  
  
"Okay, okay, okay," he said softly. He looked up at her as she blinked back tears, and as the words he never   
  
wanted to hear came out of her mouth.  
  
"I think you should go," she said, almost in a whisper. Floored, Ross looked up at her, trying to catch her gaze.  
  
"What?"  
  
"I think you should go," she repeated. Ross jumped up from the couch and stood in front of her.  
  
"Okay, okay. This morning, you said there was nothing so big that we couldn't work past it together.."  
  
"Yeah, what the hell did I know!"  
  
"Look, look, there's got to be a way to work past this," he said, the tears stinging at his eyes.   
  
He took her arm and held it as he spoke. "Okay. I can't imagine, I can't imagine my life...without you." H  
  
e began to get choked up, and watched as a tear ran down her cheek. "Without...without these arms, without this face,"   
  
he said as he touched her face, and moved down to touch her chest over where her heart would be," without this heart.   
  
Your good heart, Rach." He sunk to his knees and wrapped his arms around her waist, hugging her, while she stood,   
  
staring straight ahead, and crying.  
  
"No, I can't, you're a totally different person to me now. I used to think of you as someone who would never   
  
hurt me, ever." She took a breath and continued. "God, and now I just can't stop picturing you with her, I can't."   
  
Ross stood up and backed away a little, so he could see her face, her beautiful face, which was now stained with tears.   
  
All he wanted to do was take her in his arms and hold her, but he couldn't. She'd put up a barrier between the two of them.   
  
"It doesn't matter what you do or what you say, Ross. It's just changed everything. Forever." Staring at her in disbelief,   
  
Ross blinked away tears as he struggled to say something.  
  
"Yeah, but this can't be it, I mean..." Ross paused and placed his hands on his hips, then dropped them down   
  
to his side as he looked at Rachel, who was openly crying at this point. She took a breath.  
  
"Then how come it is?" 


	2. Chapter One: The Morning After

A/N: Nope, still don't own 'em! They still belong to Bright, Kauffman, Crane, and NBC.  
  
~*~  
  
Chapter One  
  
The next morning was a difficult one for Rachel. Waking up in her bedroom, alone...all of the memories of what they  
  
had together surrounding her like a thick fog. A thick, emotional fog that she couldn't see through. She lay there, staring  
  
at the ceiling, thinking about the past year. What went wrong? Should she have really called that break? Her stomach lurched.  
  
She was going to be sick. She ran into the bathroom and slammed the door.  
  
Despite Monica's insistence that she not go into work, Rachel took a long, hot shower and got dressed. She didn't   
  
put any makeup on, because she knew she would cry it off. A little loose powder and some chapstick were all she required  
  
for the day. She ran a brush through her hair, grabbed her briefcase, and walked out the door to hail a cab.  
  
Entering the office she and Sophie shared, a wave of nausea swept over Rachel. This is where it all started, she  
  
thought to herself. This is when it all started to go downhill. She gently set her briefcase and her purse down on her desk,  
  
then sat down herself and began to check her messages. Sophie looked up at her and Rachel managed a small smile. Sophie frowned,  
  
and after she got off of the phone with her client, she walked over and sat in front of Rachel on her desk.  
  
"God, what happened?" Sophie asked, genuine concern in her voice. Rachel shook her head. Regaling Sophie of the   
  
previous night's events would just send her into an downward emotional spiral and she wouldn't be able to get any work done.  
  
"What do you mean?" Rachel replied, pasting on that fake smile again. It didn't fool Sophie.  
  
"Well, excuse me for being rude, but, you look like hell," Sophie said. "Did someone die?" Not someone, Rachel thought,  
  
something. Rachel shook her head.  
  
"No, not exactly." She fiddled with the speakerphone on her desk, playing back the messages on her voicemail. She sighed.  
  
"It...it's Ross. We kind of...broke up." She took a deep breath, trying to keep the tears from coming. Don't do this, she scolded  
  
herself. It's not worth it, be stronger than this. Sophie placed a comforting hand on Rachel's shoulder.  
  
"God," she said. "I'm - I'm so, so, sorry, Rach. If there's anything I can do.." Rachel nodded and patted Sophie's  
  
hand.  
  
"I'll let you know," she said. She deleted the message from Joanna, saying  
  
she was going to be an hour or so late, and deleted the message from the Ralph Lauren office in LA. Then she heard it. Ross.  
  
She inhaled sharply at the sound of his voice.  
  
"Uh, hi Rach," the message began. "Look, I know we agreed not to talk, but I just, I had to call you, I had to hear  
  
your voice. I.." Rachel couldn't take it any more. She quickly deleted the message and broke down, the tears flowing freely.  
  
Sophie hugged Rachel, trying to comfort her. Rachel's tears soaked Sophie's shirt, as she cried and tried desperately to catch  
  
her breath. Every time she breathed in, she cried harder. Sophie grabbed her briefcase and purse with one hand, and helped Rachel  
  
to the break room with the other. Sitting her down in a chair, Sophie kneeled in front of her friend.  
  
"Rachel, you can't work today," she said. "Not like this. You need to go home." Rachel simply nodded, as she was crying  
  
so hard she couldn't speak. "Is there someone I can call to come get you?" Rachel nodded, took a scrap of paper out of her purse,  
  
and, with a shaky hand, scribbled the name and phone number of one of her friends.  
  
Chandler's intercom on his desk buzzed. He sighed. I've not even been here thirty minutes, he thought, and already   
  
someone's calling me! The intercom buzzed a second time. Aggravated, he slammed his finger down on the button.  
  
"Yes, Helen?" he said, obviously annoyed.  
  
"There's a Sophie on line two for you," came the monotone voice of his secretary. Sophie? he thought. Who's Sophie?  
  
Surely I've not dated a Sophie...Janice...Ginger...nope. No Sophie. He looked over at the phone and saw line two light up.  
  
"Thank you, Helen," he said, releasing his finger from the button. He picked up the phone and pressed the button  
  
for line two. "Chandler Bing."  
  
"Hi, Chandler, this is Sophie," the soft voice on the other end said. "I work with Rachel at Ralph Lauren." At the  
  
mention of Rachel's name, his heart skipped a beat. For three years now, he'd been infatuated with her, though she saw him  
  
as nothing more than a friend. He didn't pursue anything early on, because Ross, his best friend, was in love with her. He  
  
nearly broke down at the sight of her asleep on the couch the previous night, her face tear-stained, her breathing shallow.  
  
Chandler had wanted nothing more than to take her in his arms and hold her, to tell her everything would be okay..."Hello?"   
  
Sophie said. "Are you still there?" Chandler shook his head and cleared his throat. Why he was still having these thoughts  
  
of her was beyond him. She was one of his best friends and he should not be thinking of her this way.  
  
"Yes, I'm still here. Is something wrong with Rachel?" he asked, concern in his voice.  
  
"Well, yes," Sophie said. "She came into work today, and told me about what happened between her and Ross last night.  
  
And everything was fine, until she heard a message he had left on her voicemail. She's really upset, so I took her to the  
  
break room and asked her if there was anyone I could call to come get her. She gave me your number." She gave her my number?  
  
Chandler thought, the ghost of a smile on his lips. Out of everyone, she gave my number. Wow. He turned his attention back  
  
to the phone.  
  
"Does she want me to come get her now?" Chandler asked, trying to rid his voice of the sheer joy that last bit of  
  
information he had received.   
  
"Yes," Sophie replied. "She keeps asking me where you are. Are you able to come now?" Chandler nearly jumped out of  
  
his chair, before realizing he was still connected to the phone.  
  
"Uh, yeah, yeah I'll be there in a few minutes. I'm just across the street," Chandler replied. "Tell her I'll be there  
  
as soon as I can."  
  
"Thanks, Chandler. You're a good friend," Sophie said, and hung up. Chandler nearly threw the phone onto its base  
  
before grabbing his jacket and keys and heading out of his office, locking the door behind him.  
  
"Helen, I'm going home for the day, something's come up," he said to his secretary, who simply nodded at him from behind  
  
her magazine. Chandler dashed to the elevators.  
  
Five minutes later, Chandler was on the ground floor of the Ralph Lauren building. He got in the elevator and pressed  
  
the button for the 25th floor, where her office was located. When it got to the 25th floor, he stepped out of the elevator and  
  
took a deep breath, trying to contain himself. He slowly walked into Rachel's office and saw Sophie sitting at her desk, on the  
  
telephone. At the sight of him, she hung up from her call and led him into the break room.   
  
Rachel was sitting at the table, her head in her arms, crying softly. Sophie left Chandler with her, and ran back into  
  
the office, where the phone was ringing off the hook. Quietly, he set his briefcase down on the floor beside the table, pulled  
  
up a chair, and sat down next to her. He gently placed a hand on her shoulder.  
  
"Rachel?" he asked. She sniffed, took a breath, and lifted her head, smiling a bit at the sight of her friend. Chandler  
  
lifted his other hand and gently wiped the tears off of her cheek. "You okay?" She scoffed.  
  
"Oh, I'm great," she said. "Just great." She started crying again. Chandler wrapped his arms around her and pulled her  
  
to him, letting her sob into his jacket, the hot tears soaking his collar. He breathed in the scent of her vanilla shampoo, and  
  
pulled her closer, stroking her hair.  
  
"Rachel," he began, "It's going to be okay. I promise. Ross is so not worth all of this grief, you know?" She nodded as  
  
the tears continued to flow. "I'm here for you, if you want to talk about it, or if you just want someone to cry on. You know that?"  
  
She nodded again. Chandler pressed a soft kiss onto the top of her head, then sat back so he could look at her. "You want me  
  
to take you home?" She sniffed and wiped her face.  
  
"No, I can't go home," she said. "Monica told me not to go to work today, and if I show up, looking like this, she'll  
  
rub it in my face, about how she was right." Chandler shook his head.  
  
"She wouldn't do that," he said, knowing full well that Rachel was right.  
  
"Oh, yes she would," Rachel said. "Could, um..could we go back to your place for awhile?"   
  
"Sure, Rach," Chandler said. "Anything you want." Rachel smiled a little.  
  
"Can we stop for ice cream?" Chandler had to laugh.  
  
"Of course," Chandler said, standing up and offering her his hand, pulling her up as well. "What's better for you at  
  
nine in the morning than ice cream?" She bent over to pick up her briefcase and her purse, and let him lead her out of the building  
  
and onto the sidewalk, where he hailed a cab.  
  
~*~  
  
A/N: So I know that that wasn't very good, and certainly not r-rated material, but you'll have to bear with me. That's all I can  
  
ask. Review please, give me some suggestions for the next chapter, when they're at Chandler's apartment... ;) 


	3. Chapter Two: Unexpected Behavior

!A/n: Hopefully this chapter will pick up a bit more. I've not had much inspiration to write since the show ended last week. Anyway, please review, and as always, I do not own them. You think I'd be writing fanfiction if I did?  
  
Chapter Two  
  
Meanwhile, Monica wasn't even out of her bathrobe yet when Ross was poking his head in the door. She sighed as she heard the door open, and heard his exhausted, "Hi." This was the standard Ross behavior after any break-up. First with Carol, then Julie, and now, Rachel. She looked up at him as he stood in the open doorway.  
"Is Rachel here?" he asked, before coming all the way inside.  
"No, she went to work," Monica replied, "even though I told her not to. Want some coffee?" Ross nodded as he closed the door and walked inside, sitting down at the kitchen table. Monica poured him a cup and sat down next to him. "How you doing?" she asked.  
"Oh, great," he replied. "Wonderful. I'm just peachy." He took a sip of his coffee and looked at his sister. "Mon, how do you think I am? The woman I love...the one who I've been in love with for years dumped me last night." Monica nodded as she sipped her coffee, trying to think of something to say that wouldn't hurt his feelings and send him storming out of the apartment.  
"Well, sweetie," she began, "I understand how devastated you must be feeling right now, but...I think I have to side with Rachel." Ross's eyes widened.  
"What?!"  
"Ross, you slept with another woman!"  
"Yeah, well...it's a technicality."  
"A technicality? Ross. Come on." Ross sighed and sipped his coffee, nodding.  
"I know, Mon. But...just...damn. I miss her so much." He lowered his eyes to his cup. Monica placed a comforting hand on her brother's shoulder.  
"I know, sweetie. I know," she said.  
  
Around this same time, Chandler and Rachel were walking up the stairs to his apartment. Chandler peeked his head around the corner to make sure Monica's door was closed, and then signaled to Rachel that it was clear for her to come around the corner. He quietly unlocked his door and led Rachel inside, then followed her and shut the door behind him. She walked inside, slipped her shoes off, set her briefcase down, and padded across the floor to the Barcoloungers, where she plopped down and put her feet up. Chandler followed suit and sat down in the vacant chair, and turned to face her, studying her face as she stared at the blank television screen. He nudged her chair with his foot until she turned to face him. Rachel attempted to smile at him.  
"How you doing, kiddo?" he asked her. She shrugged.  
"I don't know," she replied. "I'm...I'm not sad, but I'm not happy, either. I feel like I'm just kind of existing. You know?" He nodded slowly.  
"I know," he said, reaching forward to stroke her cheek. "But things will get better, Rach. They have to." She reached up to touch his hand and offered him a small smile.  
"I know they do," she said. "I just wish they would be better now." As she said this, a tear began to roll down her cheek. Chandler wiped the tear away, then grabbed her hand and pulled her toward him, onto his lap and into a hug. She tightened her grip around his neck and sobbed onto his shoulder, soaking his collar with hot tears. He cradled the back of her head as she cried, and with his other arm he pulled her close to him, crushing her against him.  
"Rachel," he began, "I...I really don't know what to say that would be of any consolation to you. But I hate to see you hurting like this, it kills me to see you hurting like this. If there's anything I can do...and I mean anything...to make you feel the least bit better, tell me. Alright?" Rachel stopped crying for a moment and lifted her head.  
"Anything?" she asked.  
"Anything," he replied. Rachel took a breath and pulled back far enough to look at him, then ever so slowly, leaned her face close to his, closed her eyes, and softly brushed her lips against his. It took him a minute to realize what was happening, and quickly pulled away from her, searching her face for some sort of an explanation. "Rach, what...what are you doing?" Her eyes widened and her cheeks turned a deep pink. She slowly stood up and backed away from his chair, her hands covering her face.  
"Oh, God," she said, "I am...I'm so sorry. I didn't..I don't know what that was...oh God..." Rachel trailed off and hid her face with her hands. What happened next was totally unexpected. Chandler, without saying a word, stood up, walked toward her, and grabbed her around her waist, pulling her to him and crushing his lips to hers. It took her a minute to react, and then she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled herself closer to him. He pulled away and looked into her eyes.  
"Don't be sorry," he whispered. He offered her a small smile and reluctantly dropped his hands from her waist, and took a step backwards.Rachel stood there, momentarily stunned at this unexpected turn of events.Unsure of what to do or what to say, she let her heart guide her, and before she could stop herself, she was taking a step towards him and wrapping her hands around his neck, her lips finding his in a heated kiss. Dumfounded, Chandler stood there and let her kiss him for a few good seconds before placing his hands on her hips and pulling her to him, at the same time walking backwards and falling into the chair, pulling her down with him. She straddled his waist, placing a knee on either side of him, as she slightly parted her lips and began to probe his mouth with her tongue. It was at this time Chandler realized that things could get out of hand, so he gently pushed her off of him, and looked up at her, panting. "Rach...what...what are we doing?" She studied his face for a moment, trying to think of something to say that wouldn't make her look like more of an idiot.  
"I don't...I don't know, Chandler," she said, slightly smiling at him. "It just kind of happened." Chandler brushed a strand of hair out of her face and tucked it behind her ear, waiting for her to continue. "God, I knew nothing good would come of this," she continued. "Ross is your best friend...and we did just break up...God! I am an awful person. I came to you all upset about Ross, and now here I am, kissing you. I'm going to hell." Chandler couldn't help but smile at her. She noticed it and narrowed her eyes at him. "It's not funny, Chandler." He cleared his throat and cupped her cheek with his hand.  
"Rachel," he began, "first of all, you are not going to hell. Alright? Second of all, yes, Ross is my best friend, and yes you two did just break up...but..." he trailed off, trying to think of something to say that wouldn't offend her and wouldn't make himself look like an ass.  
"But what?"  
"Rachel, I don't know if you know this, but I have been wanting this to happen between us for years now. And it finally did, and I couldn't be happier....but I don't want it to continue under these circumstances. You're on the rebound from Ross, and if anything is going to happen between us, I want it to be because you want it to." He stopped, took a breath, and looked into her eyes. She was nodding, studying his face as he talked, and, if he wasn't mistaken, there was the hint of a smile on her lips. She leaned down and lightly brushed her lips against his, then pulled away and stood up. Without a word, she slipped her shoes back on, grabbed her purse and her briefcase, and began to walk towards the door. She opened the door and turned around, a huge grin on her face.  
"Thank you, Chandler," she said. "I just want you to know that....I do want this. But you're right, I have to let this Ross thing die down some." She sighed and glanced over her shoulder toward her apartment. "I think I'd better go home now. I need to get some sleep. See you later, okay? And thank you for everything." With that, she turned and walked out into the hallway, closing the door behind her. She leaned up against the door and sighed happily, then made her way across the hall and opened the door.  
Chandler sat in his chair, his mouth gaping open, at what had just happened. He let it sink in for a moment, then stood up and made his way to the kitchen, smiling. He poured himself a glass of water and walked into his bedroom to change out of his work clothes, whistling happily.  
  
The door to Monica and Rachel's apartment opened. Monica and Ross looked up to see Rachel standing there, a smile on her face. A smile which soon dissapated as soon as she saw Ross. Without a word, she quickly set her briefcase and purse down by the door, hung up her jacket, and backed out into the hallway.  
"What was that about?" Ross wondered out loud. Monica simply shrugged her shoulders before picking up Rachel's stuff and carrying it to her bedroom.  
  
Chandler heard the door slam. Figuring it was Joey, he paid it no attention and went back to fiddling around his bedroom. Just then, the bedroom door flew open, and there was Rachel, looking as if she was about to cry again. Concerned, Chandler walked toward her and put a comforting hand on her shoulder.  
"What's wrong?"Rachel looked from his hand to his face, and without saying anything, grabbed him and pulled him down to her, planting her lips on his. No resistance came from Chandler, who wrapped his arms around her waist and held her, kissing her back with just as much force as she was kissing him. After a minute or two she pulled back. "Oh," was all that Chandler could say. Rachel kissed him again and then began to speak.  
"I don't want to wait," she said. "I thought about what you said and I realized that I've wanted this for as long as I can remember. Fuck Ross, fuck what everyone else thinks. I just want..."Chandler placed a finger on her lips, silencing her. A smile ghosted his lips as he went to speak.  
"You're sure?" She simply nodded, leaning forward to kiss him again. Chandler placed his hand on her ass and lifted her up, and, still kissing her, carried her over to the bed and gently tossing her down onto it, crawling on top of her.  
  
A/n: Dun dun dun! Now you have to wait! I love leaving you in suspense. It gives me such joy. Don't forget to review. 


	4. Placeholder

Placeholder....  
  
I apologize for not updating the story in months. My story is on another computer which does not have internet access...and will not have internet access until I go back to school in a month. So hang in there....I promise that when it's finally updated you should all be pleased.  
  
Thank you for all of your pleasant reviews..as for the not so pleasant ones...thanks for the criticism. It helps.  
  
Kim 


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